Vending-machine.



H. J, DAVIS.

VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1. 1915.

LQAI? Patented W5, 1, 191%., 3 SHEETS -SHEET L.

H. J. DAVIS.

VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1. 1915.

Patented Oct. 1, 191& 3 SHEETSSHEET 2 H. J. DAVIS.

VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1. 1915.

I Patented Oct. 1, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

HENRY JEFFERSON DAVIS OF WAYNESBOBO, GEORGIA, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-FOURTH TO B. C. NEELY AND ONE-FOURTH TO J. F. NEELY, BOTH OF WAYNESBORO, GEORGIA, AND ONE-FOURTH TO ROBERT DAVIS, OF TENNILLE, GEORGIA.

VENDING-MACHINE.

To all whomz't may concern:

to machines intended for vending liquid in bottles. The embodiment of the invention illustrated has been designed especially for vending bottles of coca cola, cherry cola, ginger ale, sarsaparilla, etc., and has for its object to provide a mechanism adapted for this purpose which will be free from many of the objections that have been raised to the constructions heretofore proposed or employed for this purpose. Experience has shown that bottles of the character employed for the purpose referred to cannot be successfully handled by vending machines which are adapted for dispensing'cigars or packages of other forms. It is, of course, necessary in order to have a successful machine that pro- "ision be made for supporting a relatively large number of bottles and it is found that there is' a great tendency forthe upper layers of such a series to become so compact or interengaged as to form a bridge between opposite Walls of the compartment in which they are arranged that will be sufficiently strong to support the bottles above it whereby when the lower layer or layers have been delivered from the machine, the latter becomes inoperative and will notrespond to the desired action on the insertion of a coin and manipulation of the parts in the usual manner.

Further, with machines heretofore proposed for the same general purpose there has been no provision for saving the empty bottles and this causes a relatively high loss as the value of the bottles represents a considerable part of the necessary capital invested in such an enterprise.

The present invention provides means by which many of the objections, including those above noted, that have been raised against machines theretofore proposed for the same general purpose are avoided, and

provides a mechanism by which, regardless of the number of bottles placed in the ma- Specii ication of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 1, 1915. Serial No. 25,303.

Patented Oct. l, 1918.

chine, there can be no failure to deliver one upon properly actuating the parts until the last bottle has been dispensed. It is intended that a machine constructed in accordance wlt-h the present invention shall not require the constant care of an attendant and as it is not desirable to provide a common drinking glass or cup, or to drink the contents of the bottles obtained from the machine directly therefrom, means are provided for automatically delivering with each bottle a drinking straw.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 1s a front elevation of a machine havmg its parts constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2- is a side elevation;

ig. 3 a side elevation with the casing broken away;

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view of the machine through the bottle and straw delivermg devices; i 1

Fig. 5 is a front elevation with part ofthe casing shown in section;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view substantially on the line 66 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 is a detail view of a portion of the coin discharging means;

Fig. 8 is an enlarged sectional view of the bottle cap removing means.

It will be understood that in the drawings many of the features are illustrated more or less diagrammatically; for ex ample, the inclosing casing. Referring to the drawings 1 designates a suitable casing which is provided with a suitable compartment for the bottles to be sold, said compartment having an inclined floor that, as shown, does not extend continuously from therear wall to the front wall of the casing, but includes two main sections connected by a substantially vertical wall 2 which is slightly higher than the diameter of the bottles to be vended and is positioned in the rear of the forward edge of the main floor section. The forward section of said fioor does not extend on the same angle throughout its length, but the front portion thereof is at a considerable angle to the portion in the rear thereof. The forward end of said floor extends through an opening in the front wall of the main casing and in ad Vance of said opening, on a shaft 4 is mounted the bottle and straw delivering device.

As shown, thisdevice comprises two disks connected by an intermediate sleeve that is loosely supported on the shaft 4:, the latterbeing mounted in suitable bearings in the walls of the casing and having secured there on at one end, outside of said casing, an operating handle 4. Each of the disks 5 is provided with alined peripheral pockets 5, such pockets being of a depth slightly less than the diameter of the bottles to be accommodated therein. As shown in Fig. 5, said disks are preferably positioned or separated so that they will both engage the body of the bottle, the tapered neck thereof project ing beyond the left hand disk of the delivery device. .To the sleeve connecting the disks 5 or to a hub projecting from the right hand disk (Fig. 5) is secured a gear 6 having on one facea series of projections 6 corresponding in relative position to the pockets 5 of the delivery device. A'pawl 7 mounted .on

an arm 7 projecting from a sleeve connected to the handle Pg-or to the shaft 4 on which the handle is secured as above described, is adapted to engage the lugs 6 to impart in- '(termittent rotary movementto the delivery device as the handle is rocked forward A engagement with the gear 6.

suitable spring acts to normally hold ne handle 4 in the upright position shown in the drawings in which the pawl 7 is out of A torsion spring coiled about the shaft, as at the left hand end, and connected thereto and to the casing or any relatively stationary member may be employed for this purpose. "Said pawl is normally maintained in theposition shown in Fig. 3, by the action of a counterweight 7 b and spring 7 and in this ,position it will be seen that the notch at the forward end of said pawl is radially above the adjacent lug or projection 6 on the gear 6. Therefore, if the lever is actuated with the parts in this position there will be no en gagement between the pawl 7 and the gear 6 and no movement will be communicated to the bottle delivering device. At itsforward end the pawl 7 is provided with a coin -recept'acle 7 that normally lies below the "inner end of a receiving chute S, the inlet mouth ofwhich is in the front wall of the casing 1. lVhen a coin of the proper denomination and weight is deposited in the the diameters of thebottle diameter of a bottle diately the weight 7* pawl so that the notched portion thereof is carried radially outward beyond the path. ofthe lugs 6 and so that there will be no interference between said parts, as the handle is returned to its normal position.

As shown in Fig. 5 thenotch for engaging the lugs 6 is offset inwardly from the body of the coin receptacle 7 A show'nythe :eeth of the gear 6 mesh with the teeth on a "pinion 9 securedon the shaft of a drum 9 mounted in suitable bear-v ings carried by the casingand adapted to turn through the lower portion of a con tainer 10 for drinking straws ,"10

each adapted to receive a single straw and actuation of. the rotary bottle delivering device a straw will be delivered by the drum 9 into'recesses 5 formed in the solid portions of the disk 5 intermediate the pockets 5*. The extent of movement imparted to the bottle delivering device by the handle 4 is sufficient, to deliver. a bottle on to the holder 1 andalsoto permit the drinking and spring 7 shift the The, drum 9 is rovided with peripheral pockets the parts are so proportioned that at each straw, supported in. the recesses 5? immediatelyinthe rear of, pocket 5 from which said bottle isd scharged, to escapefrom the casing and fall into said holder '1. The lat ter may be of any. suitableform, but as shown, is a tubular, inclined casing through which the bottle and straw will slidefto the open end attheleftside ofthemachine.

Referring particularly tofF-ig. l) it, will be seen that the lower secti'onofl the {floor "or bottle support fromtwhic the: delivery device. successively ,wi the "bottles is slightly longer'thanithe-eo med lengths of ported thereon. ,asgpr vm i-noted, the

pockets 5 are slightlyfzless v p oife the lowest bottle in the mach ne 'willbe supported partly by the delivery device; ,and .partly depthfthan the ion 7 said inclined floor.- As thedelivery device is" rotated from the position shown 4, 0

it will be seen that a rotating an'dslightly rearward movement will be imparte'd to the- I g 11 tion and not engaged by the delivery device.

bottles resting on said forward flood-sec- This rotary movement is imparted to the bottle or bottles resting on the lower tier and such relative movement between the bottles, although slight, acts to prevent the undesirable bridging that has heretofore beeii the most common cause why machines for similar purposes have proved inefficient. Further, it will be noted that the bottles resting on the rear section of the floor or hottle support are not in contact one with another. This is effected by providing" said sertion of the bottom with a rod or bar 11 on which are a series of pl'njvttimls ll adapted to hold the bottles in the relative 'diate olf the pockets 5;

5 .casingwhere it is provided with ahandle or crank by whichit maybe turned so that the projections 11*thereon will be caused tol'ie flush with or below'thelevel of the floor andi offer. no obstruction to thefforw'ard 'move--' 10 ment of the bottles,'jas--th'e delivervgdevice operates. Itwill be understood that the. rod

11 is only maintained in the positionjshown in Fig. 4 while the machine-is being cfillled es "u'nsightly'andzcan only be disposed of" by.

f-special care and attention. Further, these capsare of considerable value as premiums and it is therefore desirableto save the same.

As li eretoforeindicated, the machine also includes means by which the empty bottles and that after the desired numberofkb has beenplaced therein tlie-lowertier' held in the relation shown by'th'eiw g the bottles super-imposed thereon,

An inclined butment 12 prevents th'ebottles in layers above the lower one ifrom exsupporting fioorjandt maintains the relation between the several layers-that. is illustrated in Fig.4. Similar ahutments112 ,"12 are .shownon the front wall of thelcasing above 25- asupplelnentalfioor 12. "This arrangement prevents the bottles in difi'erentf layers from becoming wedged between adjacentglayersf and the walls lolfthe' casing; 'fi'lo assist guiding the bottles to the delivery device'the machine is provided with two rods 13, 13*

which are hinged at their rear. ends to the auxiliary bottle support12 and are supported at their" forward ends by fieirible lneansyl3 13. These-guide rods' contactwith the necks ofthe bottles and with the bodies nearthe" ends thereof. Occasionally thereiwill he agslighti disalin'ementof the bottles longitudinally "and. therefore these guide rods are, {aspend, flexibly-supported sired fo rward'movement of 'thelbottles v Therotarymovement'jinipartedto the-botaction of the bottle in the pocket imme'di:

' 1 "ately in "alinefnentfwith 'the, lowest layer of bottles, but alsoi'by the par ticular shape of ;:the: sol-id'portions' of the disks .5 interme- These parts as they pass. the opening in the front wall of the bottle compartmentof the casing im pinge on'the forward bottle of the lowest layer therein and insure that the same will be loosened from any binding action exerted by the other bottles so as to immediately roll into the following pocket 5 as the same comes into proper position.

The machine is provided in its front wall with means for removing the metal caps by which bottles of the character heretofore re ferrcd to are commonly provided, such means being shown indetail in Fig. 8. As shown in that figure a suitable slot in the wall of tending as far to the rear; as those on the the casingis provided with a metal face plate 14 that projects slightly beyond the.

upper wall of the slot and a spur 14 is provided for engaging the flat top surface of the, removablecap. By simply inserting the bottle in the slot so that the cap is sufiiciently engagedby the spur 14* and moving the body of'the bottle downward the metal cap is readily disengaged and will fall through. a suitable chute into a receptacle 1,5

provided within the casing. This feature of the-invention is ofimportance as it provides'a' ready means for collecting the removed caps which, if not thus collected, are

' repeatedly it is desirable to prevent their being. carried away or destroyed. Therefore means are provided bywhichzthe purchaser of axbottle after emptying the same may re} turn the emptybottle and receive a valuable consideration therefor. As shown, the ma:

chine is providedbelow' and in front of the bottle delivery device with an empty bottle receiver 16. This comprises a body mounted on .trunnions 16* and adapted'to receive a single bottle, the depth of said receiver being a little less than the bottle to be inserted therein so that the closed, base, end (if the latte-r will project slightly as represented in dotted lines in the drawings. This receptaclei's arranged within a suitable aimat: themforward ends so-,. 't ha=t' either may f. yield slightly fvertically independently of the other and ofi'er no hindrance tothe deiliaryacasing having at its upper end an "be in'serted and provided inits front wall with a slot throughwhich projects a handle 16 by means of which said bottle holder 16 may be rocked to a position where the bottle contained therein will automatically, by gravity, slip out into the interior of the easempty bottle in passing into the casing will cooperate with a coin delivering mechanism so that a coin will be discharged through an outlet at one side of the machine. In employing a machine constructed in accordance with the present invention it is de- 17 designates a receptacle, shown as having the form of a tube in which a series of five cent pieces, for example, may be super-imposed and 18 designates a slide ing. Means are provided by which the which the bottles will which reciprocates across the lower end of said tube and the mouth of a delivery channel or way 19, said slide being adapted when in one position, as for example that shown in dotted-lines in Fig. 3, to have a lateral projection thereon positioned in the rear of the lowest coin in the tube 17 and when moved into the position represented by full lines, to discharge said coin "into the delivery passage 19. To effect these movements said slide is connected at one end with a lever 20 fulcrumed at 21 and having one arm provided with a lateral projection that extends into the path of the portion of the empty bottle that projects from the receptacle 16, Therefore, lever 20 will be turned by the engagement ofthe empty bottle with said lateral projection. 22, the empty bottle sliding over such projection into the interior of the casing as it leaves the receptacle 16. This movement of the lever 20, as above explained, positions the slide so that the coin engage thereby is brought into alinement with the chute 19 and is discharged. The slide 18 is of the same or slightly less thickness than the coins to be discharged and when the parts are positioned as indicated in full lines, the lowest coin is in front of the projection in said slide and is supported by the base 0r support for the tube 17. Anarm 23 extends upwardly from the slide 18 into the path of the lugs or projections 6 on the gear 6 of the bottle delivery device. Therefore, when this device is actuated by the handle 43 the slide 18 will be moved into the position represented in dotted lines in Fig. 3 where the lowest coin in the tube 17 will be positioned in such relation to the slide as to be moved thereby over the discharge tube 19 when the lever 20 is again rocked by the return of an empty bottle .to the casing. The receptacle 16 will be normally maintained in its vertical position shown by gravity, or any other suitable meanaan'd will return to said position automatically on the empty charged" therefrom. To prevent the bottles fr'ombeing broken by falling after leaving the receptacle 16 it is proposed to provide in the bottom of the casing a suitable stop 24 having a padded or cushioned top against strike and from which they will roll or fall into the body of the casing. To prevent improper actuation of the coin delivering means a shield 17 is connected with the handle 16 so that as the bottle receptacle is turned by moving said handle upward the opening 16 will be closed.

It will be evident that instead of usin coins to shift the pawl 7 and in the tube 1% suitable checks corresponding to the necessary coins may be employed. Therefore, in

the following claims the term coin is 1nas said receptacle 16 is rocked the' bottle being distended to include such checks as well as actual money. 1

Also while in the foregoing specification reference has been made to dimes and nickels it will be understood that coins of other denominations may be used if de sired. v I

The lever 20 and coin slide 18 cannot be actuated by turning the bottle holder 16 unless a perfect bottle is positioned therei'n. That is, said lever is rocked by contact therewith of the portion of a bottle that projects from the holder and neck of which has been broken, so that it would not project from holder 16, could not be used to operate the coin slide.

After the coin delivery slide has been actuated by returning a bottle to the casing it is impossible to obtain another coin from the chute 17 until the delivery device has been again actuated following the deposit of a coin that will render the pawl 7 operative. 1

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is i 1. In a machine for the purpose described, the combination of a support for a series of bottles, a delivery device adapted to withdraw bottles successively from said support, coin controlled meansfor intermittently actuating the delivery device, a coin receptacle, and means for discharging a coin from said receptacle arranged to be controlled by the bottle delivering device.

2. In a machine for the purpose described,

the combination of a support for a series.

coins from said receptacle successively,

means actuated by the bottle delivery device for moving said ejecting means in one direction, and means arranged to be actuated by returning a bottle to the machine for moving said reciprocating means in the opposite direction.

3. In a machine for the purpose described, the combination of a support for a series of bottles, a rotary delivery device adapted to withdraw bottles successively from said support, coin controlled means for intermittently actuating said delivery device, a coin receptacle, and means arranged to be actuated by the bottle delivery device and by the return of a bottle to the machine for successively discharging coins from said receptacle.

4. In a machine for the purpose described, the combination of a support for a series of bottles, a delivery device adapted to withdraw bottles successively from said support, coin controlled means for intermittently actuating said delivery device, a coin receptacle, a reciprocating slide adapted to move into therefore a bottle, the

and from position to receive a coin from the receptacle, means actuated by the bottle de livery device for moving said slide in one direction, and means actuated by returning a bottle to the machine for moving said slide in the opposite direction, whereby by returning a bottle to the machine after actuating the delivery device, a coin will be discharged from said receptacle.

' 5. In a machine for the purpose described, the combination of a support for a series of bottles, a delivery device adapted to withdraw bottles successively from said support, coin controlled means for intermittently actuating said delivery device, a coin receptacle, a reciprocating slide adapted to move into and from position to receive a coin from the receptacle, means actuated by the bottle delivery device for moving said slide in one direction, and a lever connected with said slide and adapted to be actuated by returning a bottle to themachine to move said slide in the opposite dlrection, for the purpose specified.

6. In a machine for the purpose described,

, the combination of a support for a series of bottles, means adapted to. Withdraw bottles controlled means and the return of a bottle to the machine.

7. In a machine for the purpose deserlbed, the combination of a support for a series of bottles, means adapted to Withdraw bottles successively from the support, coin controlled means for intermittently actuating the delivery device, a coin receptacle, means adapted to be positioned to receive a coin from said-receptacle by movement of said coin controlled means, and a pivotally mounted receiver for a bottle adapted to return a bottle to the machine and effect movement of said coin receiver to discharge the coin therein.

8. In a coin controlled bottle vending machine, the combination of a casing adapted to receive and support a series of bottles, a device for successively delivering bottles from the casing, a receptacle for a stack of coins of less value than the selling price of a bottle to be delivered by the machine, coin controlled means adapted to actuate the delivery device, means adjustable by the delivery device to engage the lowest coin in said stack, and means adapted to be actuated by returning a bottle to the casing for Withdrawing said engaged coin from the coin receptacle,

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

HENRY JEFFERSON DAVIS. 

